§ Sir R. CLOUGHasked the Minister of Pensions (1) if his attention has been called to the hardship imposed on widows who lost their bread-winning sons in the War by the gradual reduction of their allowances; whether, seeing that it is against the wishes of the community as a whole that saving should be effected in this manner, he will advise strict care in carrying out a policy of this nature;
(2) in how many cases there have been reductions in the allowances to widows who have lost in the War sons who were their only support; and whether the Ministry of Pensions is using pressure to persuade surviving married sons with their own responsibilities, and often in unemployment, to assist their mothers to 52W live, in order to enable it to economise in the allowances the State pays to mothers?
§ Mr. MACPHERSONI am not quite clear what class of parent's pension my hon. Friend has in mind. Where a son who, before the War, provided support for a widowed mother was killed in the War a pension based on the amount of support which he actually gave has been granted and, subject to the necessary correction of erroneous awards, will continue to be paid in full. There is another class of pension of which the basis is the present need of the parent, and this pension may be granted regardless of whether the deceased son did or did not contribute to the parent's support. The scheme under which this class of pension is awarded has within the past six months been revised in accordance generally with the recommendations of a Select Committee of this House on the principle that the State should meet the need to the extent of the support which the deceased son might reasonably have been expected to give had he survived This principle necessarily presumes that other surviving sons must bear some share in the parent's support. In point of fact the pension is awarded more generously than strict adherence to this principle would involve, since the State undertakes liability for pension up to the amount of 20s. a week in cases where the permanent domestic circumstances justify the maximum award. Under this scheme while some pensions have been reduced others have been increased in amount.